Every business should have an active presence on multiple social media channels. Learning how to manage your social media platforms should be core for focused new business owners and marketers.

Different networks can be challenging and time plays a huge factor in selecting the right management tools for your business. The correct tools can help you reply to messages; monitor your social channels, schedule posts and monitor analytics from one place.

Selecting the correct tool can be daunting when you are getting started; there are certainly plenty to choose from. I have listed some of the top user selected platforms to highlight; many have free as well as paid versions depending on the features and benefits that are important to you. Check them out and decide which works best for your needs.

“Social media is here. It’s not going away; not a passing fad. Be where your customers are: in social media.” by Lori Ruff. (@loriruff)

With its high user ranking, Hootsuite gives you the ability to interact with 25 social networks from a single dashboard. A great all around tool if you’re interested in engagement, publishing and workflow features, managing campaigns and viewing analytics are other pluses.

Start your free trial with AgoraPulse if you are looking for a tool to help manage your Facebook and Twitter accounts. Features include; Facebook Applications, CRM Software and Analytic Reports. You can easily run contests and comparisons to your competitors. Never miss interactions with inbox media alerts.

Post to multiple social channels with Sprout Social scheduling. Pull messages into a single inbox and manage multiple profiles at the same time. Sprouts user-friendly format helps users collaborate with other team members too! Strong analytic reports include message performance, demographics data and community growth.

With Sendible you can easily manage comments and posts from Facebook, Twitter and Flickr in one place. Prioritize important mentions and analyze messages requiring attention quickly. Engage with your online community to track your social media and email messages to measure the success of your campaigns.

Are you all about monitoring your online content? Then check out Mention’s advertised “Never Miss a Thing Online” promise. Built to make sifting through online content easy, sharing quick and team collaboration simple; analyzing social data couldn’t be easier.